WestSouthwest Brief

Lanna Lewis of the Kalamazoo Community Foundation and activist-rapper Ed Genesis provide an update on an on-going racial healing project in Kalamazoo, as well as discuss the local observance of the third annual National Day of Racial Healing set for Jan. 22, timed for the day after Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

Kalamazoo Schools Superintendent Michael Rice says he thinks a different school calendar with a shorter summer break is likely the way of the future. Two schools in the Kalamazoo district started this academic year in July as part of an improvement plan required by the state to stay open.

Southwest Michigan’s Second Wave is now “On the Ground” in Battle Creek. Like their project in Kalamazoo, On the Ground Battle Creek seeks stories in neighborhoods. Starting with Washington Heights and now Urbandale.

Western Michigan University Economics Professor Susan Pozo says she admires immigrants. Her dedication in a new book on the economic impact of immigration says “in honor of your many achievements and in sympathy for the sacrifices that come from leaving your home to offer your talents in a new country.” Pozo is the editor of The Human and Economic Implications of 21st Century Immigration Policy.